Small Charitable Donations and Childcare Payments Bill — Assessment of Impact of Abolition of the Gift Aid Donation Threshold on the Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme — 15 Nov 2016 at 16:00

The majority of MPs voted against an assessment of the impact of removing the requirement for certain amount of Gift Aid donations before a body becomes eligible for payments under the Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme.

Gift Aid is the scheme under which charities can reclaim any basic rate income tax paid on a gift from HMRC.

The Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme enables charities and Community Amateur Sports Clubs to claim a Gift Aid style top-up payment on small donations up to £20 in circumstances where it is not practical or feasible to obtain a Gift Aid declaration.[1]

MPs were considering the Small Charitable Donations and Childcare Payments Bill[2].

The proposed new clause rejected in this vote was titled: Abolition of Gift Aid donations threshold and stated:

‘(1) The Chancellor of the Exchequer must carry out an assessment of the impact on charities and Community Amateur Sports Clubs of amending the Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme so as to remove the 10% Gift Aid donations threshold that must be met in order to access the Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme, including an assessment of the differential impact on different sizes of charities and Community Amateur Sports Clubs concerned.

(2) The Chancellor of the Exchequer must lay a report of the assessment before the House of Commons within six months of the passing of this Act.’

An explanatory statement accompanying the proposed new clause stated:

Charities and CASCs must give gift aid exemption claims on donations received in order to make a claim under the Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme. The total gift aid donations must be at least 10% of the amount of the small donations on which top-up payments are claimed. This new clause would require the Chancellor to assess the impact of abolishing this requirement.

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